NHS told to prepare for war casualties

The Department of Health has been briefed on contingency plans for war casualties in the event of a war with Iraq, it was announced last night.

The Ministry of Defence said 28 health authorities in England had been told to prepare for casualties. A MoD spokesman said the move was one stage in the build-up to possible military action in Iraq but denied that it signified that war in the Gulf was inevitable or imminent.

"We have certainly been in touch with the Department of Health," the spokesman said. "We have to undertake contingency planning if there is a requirement to take military action. We have to be prepared for the possibility of military casualties coming back to the UK. It would be irresponsible for us not to be in a discussion of this sort."

The briefing identifies hospitals and emergency medical sites near airports and other ports of entry into the UK, and includes discussions on the treatment of victims of biological and chemical warfare.

The MoD could not confirm reports that members of the Church of England had also been approached to comfort the bereaved, but the spokesman said: "We have to think of pastoral care of relatives in these cases."

Half of the required 40,000 British military personnel, including reservists, are already stationed in the Gulf.